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Rivalry: expect game publishers to embrace esports betting in 2023

Esports wagering company Rivalry has indicated that game developers and publishers will likely embrace esports betting in a similar fashion to pro sports leagues during 2023. 

Publishing its 2022 ‘Wrapped’ report, Rivalry noted the need for publishers to drive engagement further this year as the majority of revenues coming from in-game transactions. This, Rivalry claims, places ‘an important focus on esports’ as it can act as a driving force for greater user engagement. 

Rivalry cited research that found 69% of millennial NFL bettors watched more sports than usual if they placed a bet on the game. The operator stated that the industry could activate more users and ‘deepen engagement’ with users by embracing sports betting. 

The company stated: “Sports betting offers a slate of benefits that are uniquely aligned with the KPIs of publishers, esports organizations, and tournament organizers. Further embracing responsible and regulated sports betting will stand to offer the larger games industry opportunities to deepen engagement and monetize.”

Ahead of 2023, Rivalry made two other predictions – that Valorant will continue to rise in popularity and that mobile games will continue to gain greater traction throughout the year. 

Valorant was earmarked as an emerging betting contender within its 2022 review, with the first-person shooter game named as one to watch. 

“The growth of Valorant has been unlike any other title we have seen since our launch in 2018,” Rivalry’s report outlined. “Predicting the longevity of a new esports IP is tough, with many games coming and going over the years. 

“Ultimately, the publishers are bumpers on the bowling alley, and it’s the community that will determine if it wins or loses. But, being a betting company, our bet is Voralant is here to stay”.

The report also named the most popular betting markets from 2022, with League of Legends taking the top spot in an unsurprising fashion, with LoL’s World Championship establishing itself as the ‘most popular esports event in the world’. 

The top five consisted of League of Legends, CS:GO, Dota 2, Valorant and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang. 

Rivalry also disclosed that the top three titles accounted for 90% of betting activity throughout 2022, with Valorant identified as a key growth title. 

Despite League of Legends taking the crown in terms of betting activity globally, Canadians betted the most on CS:GO, with the ESL Pro League and WePLay Academy League providing plenty of opportunities for betting. 

Commenting on the report, Rivalry CEO Steven Salz said: “2022 was an incredible year for Rivalry, and equally exciting for the larger esports betting segment we participate in. We have continued to extend our growth as a company, averaging 29% month-over-month growth from January to October, while our esports betting customer base has similarly increased in size and betting volume over that period. 

“From our leading position in esports betting, we’re keen to share our experiences, trends and outlook. Rivalry Wrapped not only speaks to the specific direction of the betting segment, but also where trends are headed in esports globally. This includes correlations we see between betting activity and viewership growth, just as you would in traditional sports. 

“Where we see momentum in betting activity, it often translates into enhanced economics and overall viewership growth for the esport. For that reason, we believe this information will be helpful not just to the betting industry, but the esports community more broadly.”

CGB Rewind: The story so far for Ontario’s igaming market

One of the biggest gambling markets to go live not only in Canada but in North America this past year was Ontario’s sports betting and igaming market, bringing the grey market into the regulated landscape.

At the end of January, operators were given a launch date of April 4 for their sports betting and igaming offerings with Paul Burns, President and CEO of the Canadian Gaming Association, calling the announcement “another major milestone and achievement for Ontario’s gaming industry”.

However, the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation (MSIFN) community challenged the decision, claiming it violated a constitutional right to consultation with Indigenous leaders.

Before its launch had even taken place, Ontario was given a lot of hype and big expectations due to its population size, framework, and potential to produce a competitive marketplace.

Back in March, theScore’s President and Chief Operating Officer, Benjie Levy, highlighted the province to become one of North America’s most lucrative igaming markets. 

The province is under the regulation of iGaming Ontario, a subsidiary of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) which had given the responsibility to create a safe, regulated and competitive online gaming market. It is also controlled by the Ontario Lottery and Gambling Corporation (OLG).

One of the key drivers by the regulators is promoting responsible gaming. As such, the Responsible Gaming Council’s (RGC) RG Check Accreditation program is integrated into the entry requirements for the igaming market.

The province’s regulators also put in place a transition period to allow grey market operators to switch to the regulated market, giving them until the end of October to do so. There are also limitations on advertising.

With an open license model, operators and suppliers that went live on launch day include theScore, PointsBet, 888, FanDuel, Caesars, Kindred, Light & Wonder, Kambi, Rush Street Interactive, LeoVegas, BetMGM, and bet365. Others soon followed including DraftKings, Genius Sports, Paysafe, NorthStar Gaming, and Bally’s.

A survey by OntarioBets discovered that money line bets were the most popular form of wagers amongst Ontarians, and the province prefers to wager on the NBA over the NHL.

In June, Doug Hood, Project Director of Sports Betting at the AGCO, reflected on the launch of online sports betting and igaming in Ontario, calling it a “success”.

Soon, however, the AGCO began issuing fines, as Unibet, PointsBet, BetMGM, and DraftKings were penalized.

“The first financial figures and statements about the Ontario market came as operators published their Q2 2022 reports, with many expecting even bigger numbers from the market in the future, while others tempered expectations.

At the end of August, the iGO released its first quarterly report for the province, declaring just $124m in revenue over the first three months of the market’s operations, with a handle of $4.07bn.

The transition period for grey market operations to move to the regulated Ontario market closed at the end of October.

Around the same time, the iGO announced that the market’s handle had grown by close to $2bn in its second quarter of operations to $6.04bn, with revenue standing at $267m.

Close to the end of the year, the Mohawk Council of Kahnawa:ke (MCK) also filed a legal challenge to Ontario’s online gambling market with the Ontario Superior Court.

The AGCO also issued an order to all operators in the province to stop offering and accepting wagers on UFC events due to betting integrity concerns.

As Ontario moves into 2023, the market is still filled with optimism, but expectations may need to be revisited.

CGB Rewind: land-based casinos find their feet once more in action-packed 2022

2022 was a landmark year for the Canadian gaming industry. Land-based casinos finally bounced back from the pandemic, with many of the restrictions finally abandoned by the government. It was also a year in which casinos aimed to find their place in the gaming landscape in Ontario post igaming launch. 

Join us at Canadian Gaming Business as we look back at a whirlwind year for land-based casinos across the country during 2022. 

Q1 – the COVID battle

It may seem like the pandemic was a distant memory, but let it not be forgotten that throughout the first quarter of 2022, Canadian casinos were still reeling from the newly imposed shutdowns due to the omicron variant of COVID-19. 

From Jan 5, the province closed casinos, bingo halls, and other gaming establishments for a minimum of three weeks. They eventually opened again at the end of January. 

Moreover, Quebec ordered all casinos closed in December as well as VLTs, bingo, and bar games to temporarily shut down. Quebec casinos did not re-open until Feb 28, leaving roughly 2,300 employees being reassigned to customer service roles with Loto-Quebec across the province.

Meanwhile, Q1 also saw casinos in Saskatchewan benefiting from an uplift in VLT commission following a review of the provincial government’s budget. 

Operators previously received 15% of net sales as a commission, with the remaining 85% going to the province, but the updated budget mandated a rise to 18%. 

Finally, Q1 marked the soft launch of Gateway Casino & Entertainment’s new Cascades Casino North Bay. Initially supposed to be open in the summer of 2020 before the pandemic derailed that timeline, the $31m casino finally opened its doors to the public on Mar 9.

Q2 – Making moves as Ontario goes online

The major Canadian gaming story was the launch of Ontario’s private igaming market, but casino operators were aiming to get a piece of the pie. 

Gateway Casinos declared that the opening of its North Bay casino had ‘“exceeded our wildest dreams”, with all 300 slot machines regularly full on a daily basis in the first few weeks and months of operations. 

Meanwhile, traditional land-based casino operator Mohegan managed to get a slice of the online pie, becoming the first brick-and-mortar operator to go online in Ontario, launching PlayFallsview. 

Despite murmurings from some that online gaming would steal business away from land-based casinos following the launch of Ontario, Mohegan were happy to jump right in, denying that online gaming would “cannibalize” its business. 

“Online gaming has been alive and well in the province of Ontario for probably 15, if not 16 years”, Niagara Casino President Richard Taylor told Canadian Gaming Business in the fall edition of the CGB Magazine. “To say it’s now going to start to cannibalize our business? Well, if it was, it would have already done so.”

Q3 – Expansion and transformation

Q3 began on a slightly sour note as it emerged that Rideau Carleton Casino had been fined more than $227,000 by the AGCO for dozens of alleged regulatory violations, including “repeatedly” failing to implement, follow and enforce anti-money laundering policies and procedures.

AGCO CEO Tom Mungham said: “These penalties are intended to drive the improvements needed at the Rideau Carleton Casino, and we will be carefully monitoring the casino’s activities to ensure these significant audit findings are addressed.”

However, not all was bad for the industry in Q3 as Great Canadian became Great Canadian Entertainment in a rebrand that kickstarted a “strategy to set a new industry standard for gaming entertainment in Canada”.

Finally, casino gaming expanded in BC as BCLC celebrated the opening of Cascades Casino in Delta. Opened in partnership with Gateway Casinos, the venue created 600 new jobs in Delta.

Q4 – Ending the year on a positive

Q4 saw two key announcements in the casino industry. Firstly, Gateway opened the new Playtime Casino Wasaga Beach, a $34.3m Ontario-based casino which created 140 new jobs.

Meanwhile, OLG partnered with Mohegan to announce that global superstar musician Billy Joel would perform at the grand opening of the new OLG Stage at Fallsview Casino.

Taking place on Feb. 23, 2023, the grand opening will see Joel play hits from his illustrious career such as ‘Big Shot’, ‘Piano Man’ and ‘It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me’ to celebrate OLG’s updated stage at Fallsview. 

Finally, Great Canadian ended a transformative year by unveiling Matthew Anfinson as its new CEO and Jordan Banks as the company’s first executive chairperson.

Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board agrees sale of Camelot LS to Allwyn

The Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board has agreed a deal to sell the Camelot Lottery Solutions (Camelot LS) group of companies to Allwyn AG.

The agreement represents an important step in the direction of realising Allwyn’s objective of growing its brand in the US market, as the Camelot LS Group operates the Illinois Lottery under a private management deal through its operating company Camelot Illinois LLC.

Furthermore, the Chicago-based firm is also a partner of the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery, helping to enhance its lottery operations.

Robert Chvátal, CEO of Allwyn, commented: “We have always viewed the US market as an important part of Allwyn’s future growth story, and the acquisition of Camelot LS Group is the right step.

“Allwyn’s goal is building better lotteries, and helping them raise more for good causes, through innovation, technology, efficiency and safety in our quest for enhanced player engagement.

“Both Allwyn and Camelot share a passion about the lottery business, delivering value to our customers, and growing lottery returns to communities.”

Upon completion of the transaction, the companies of the Camelot LS Group will become wholly-owned subsidiaries of Allwyn. The transaction is anticipated to close in Q1 of 2023, subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Allwyn also expects to close the acquisition of Camelot UK Lotteries Limited – the current operator of the UK National Lottery – in the same quarter, following a similar agreement with the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board last month.

The lottery operator asserts that, currently, no changes are planned to the Camelot LS Group leadership team in connection with the transaction, and that the business “will continue to enhance the performance of the lotteries it supports”.

Wayne Pickup, Camelot LS Group Chief Executive, added: “We remain committed to serving our customers, engaging players and growing lottery revenue to benefit the communities they serve.

“As the private manager of the Illinois Lottery, we work closely with the Department of Lottery to drive responsible and sustainable growth to maximise revenue for the state of Illinois. 

“Combining the resources, expertise, and talent of Allwyn and Camelot LS Group will only strengthen the results we help the state of Illinois and all our customers achieve.”

Stride Management receives BC licence, aims for Ontario as Faithfull departs

Stride Management has been granted a gaming services provider licence in British Columbia and is aiming for licensure from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario in the near future. 

Jumbo Interactive updated investors on the progress of Stride Management, the Canadian subsidiary which it acquired over the summer, also noting that President Dean Faithfull will leave the firm on Dec 31. 

Receiving a licence in British Columbia will allow Stride to provide games in the province to BCLC’s online platform, whilst building up towards an Ontario licence which would offer a wide range of operator clients. 

Jumbo CEO and Founder, Mike Veverka, said: “With over three times the population of Alberta and Saskatchewan, Ontario and British Columbia represent a compelling growth opportunity for Stride to expand its client base.”

As aforementioned, Jumbo also announced the departure of Dean Faithfull as President of Stride. Under the provisions of the updated acquisition agreement, Faithfull will also leave as a director and employee of the company as Jumbo seeks to build a new path for its subsidiary. 

Replacing Faithfull will be Shane Simmons, who has been at Stride for the past 11 years and currently serves as Chief Business Officer. 

This does represent a fast-track of the original plans though; Jumbo will implement its Stride strategy from Jan 1 rather than the originally planned date of July 1, 2023. 

As such, Jumbo has paid an additional $1.125m non-contingent payment as part of the acquisition price. With $1m taken off the second earn-out payment, the updated terms mean that Jumbo’s total consideration for Stride has increased from $11.0m to $11.125m

Veverka added: “I would like to thank Dean for his leadership and significant contribution to Stride over the last two decades. I am also very pleased to announce the appointment of Shane Simmons to replace Dean. Shane has been with Stride for 11 years and has managed the day-to-day operations of the business as Stride’s Chief Business Officer. 

“He brings a deep understanding of the Canadian charity lottery market and will facilitate a smooth transition which has already been in progress for some time.”

SportsGrid to serve Canadian bettors with FAST channel launch in Feb

Sports betting streaming platform SportsGrid has announced the launch of a Canadian-focused channel titled FAST, marking its first entry in the country. 

Bringing sports betting programming services to Canada, SportsGrid will debut FAST in mid-February across connected TVs and mobile devices. 

The channel will provide collegiate and professional sports coverage to sports bettors in Canada. It will aim to partner with media companies that cover Canadian leagues, conferences and teams to enhance such coverage.

“SportsGrid’s launch in Canada is an important day for our company to expand our overall global streaming ecosystem and regional coverage of sports wagering,” said Jason Sukhraj, GM of Syndication. 

“SportsGrid Canada will be a differentiated streaming program service providing daily sports betting coverage of Canadian sports with insightful commentary and real-time data visualizations. 

“Canada is an important market for SportsGrid as the rapidly growing sports betting audience is shifting to streaming providing tremendous opportunities for advertisers to connect with the Adult 18-34 demographic.” 

It comes after a year of expansion in the US for SportsGrid, which has forged partnerships with VIDAA, the Associated Press, Sportradar and BetMGM amongst others to improve the accessibility and quality of its sports coverage. 

As well as expanding to Canada in 2023, the firm is also launching SportsGrid Deportes next year as it aims to provide sports betting coverage to Spanish-speaking people across the US and Latin America. 

Canadian viewers can access SportsGrid FAST from February from their connected TV device or smart TV.

Bet99 pens F2P games deal with NHL

Bet99 has become an official partner of the National Hockey League (NHL) in which it will launch free-to-play games with the sporting league. 

Penning a multi-year agreement with NHL, Bet99 will launch a new F2P game titled NHL PRePlay, available now for players in Canada.

NHL PrePlay offers hockey fans predictive outcome questions, as well as queries utilising NHL Edge data such as ‘Which player will hit the hardest shot?’ throughout each game day of the NHL campaign.

Players receive points for each correct answer and the top points winners throughout the season will be the ‘Grand Prize’ winner, receiving a $100,000 prize. 

“This partnership is groundbreaking for Canadian hockey and sports fans,” said Jared Beber, CEO of BET99. “NHL PrePlay will amplify fan engagement and excitement around NHL games, especially the prizes, which include access to once-in-a-lifetime experiences. 

“Designed to support our focus on education within the gaming space, the game offers opportunities for players to explore the space and become more knowledgeable without making real-money wagers.

“Not only is the NHL PrePlay program innovative and a great access point for new and potential bettors, but the educational aspect also fits well with our focus on responsible gaming. We’ll also leverage our partnership with NHL star Auston Matthews, taking this agreement to the next level.”

In turn, Bet99 will receive broadcast exposure for its branding across the NHL season and Stanley Cup play-off matches. 

Furthermore, the operator will gain exclusive marketing rights and designations that will connect Bet99’s brands with NHL fans through the league’s digital, and social media channels.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Bet99 and to promote Bet99.ca and Bet99.net on this unique and innovative Free-To-Play platform,” said Jason Jazayeri, NHL Vice President, Business Development. 

“This collaborative partnership has allowed us to create an entirely new Free-to-Play game that will focus on delivering a fun and immersive game to our fans, while also providing a level of access and prizing that we haven’t seen before in our sport.”

BET99 utilizes Xpoint Verify to protect Ontario players

BET99 has partnered with geolocation and compliance technology company Xpoint to improve its protection for its Ontario players.

Under the terms of the deal, Xpoint has embedded its Verify services into BET99’s online sports betting and casino platforms, helping its users “engage safely, securely and fraud-free”.

“I’m delighted to add the Canadian market-leading sports betting platform, BET99, to our growing list of live partners as they make such rapid progress growing their brand,” commented Marvin Sanderson, CEO of Xpoint.

“As we expand our North American footprint, we’re building more tools and systems specifically designed to help our partners utilize their location-based data for fraud analysis and micro-geofencing services.”

In November, BET99 bolstered its presence in Canada after signing Toronto FC icon Sebastian Giovinco as a brand ambassador. The operator has also recently become a member of the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA).

“Xpoint is a perfect choice to partner with on geo-verification technology,” added Paul Nyzuk, Chief Technology Officer at BET99.

“Xpoint offers more data points that can be used to detect fraud, offering more data than other major geo-verification services. The partnership also fits with BET99’s mandate to leverage innovative technologies to deliver an online betting experience like no other.”

Atlantic Lottery secures Scientific Games partnership for scratch game provision

The Atlantic Lottery has agreed a deal with Scientific Games that sees the latter become the primary instant game partner of the eastern Canadian organisation. 

Scientific Games will provide Scratch’N Win instant games to Atlantic Lottery players in the provinces of New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland & Labrador.

Maureen Wojick, VP of Lottery and Living Lab for Atlantic Lottery, said: “Scientific Games has solidified its long-time partnership with Atlantic Lottery, delivering strong and responsible sales growth for our Scratch’N Win products, topping our previous year by 9.8%.

“We are focused on using the company’s analytics and insights to create a Scratch’N Win game portfolio that continues to drive performance while entertaining our players with exciting games.”

Penning a five-year deal, this latest agreement extends a long-lasting relationship for the two parties, who have worked together since 1983, which has resulted in growth across the lottery’s extensive portfolio of games. 

As well as Scratch’N Win Games, Scientific Games will now supply and operate the lottery’s integrated central gaming and ilottery system that serves draw, instant-win, sports betting, icasino, and digital instant game content across retail and digital channels.

SG will also provide retail technology, player account management and subscription services to the lottery.

John Schulz, President of Americas & Global Instant Products for Scientific Games, added: “Working with a primary instant games partner that uses analytics and insights to support continued growth across the entire game portfolio is a strong business approach. 

“We are honoured to continue our good work together to entertain Atlantic Lottery players in New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador.”

Pariplay brings AGS content to Alberta via Fusion platform

Pariplay has expanded its reach into Canada by taking American Gaming Systems’ (AGS) content live in Alberta on PlayAlberta.ca via its Fusion platform.

AGS content – which is a Fusion studio partner – is now available to players in the province thanks to a partnership between Pariplay and ilottery provider NeoPollard Interactive.

Under the terms of the deal, PlayAlberta customers will now be able to play AGS’ popular titles such as Capital Gains, Tiger Lord and Golden Wins through the Fusion platform.

“Pariplay’s Fusion platform is rightly regarded as bringing with it a broad product offering to markets all around the world,” commented Stuart Carr, SVP at AGS Interactive.

“With its strong focus on growth across North America, we are honoured to take a historic step into Alberta as the first Fusion studio partner to go live in the province.

“PlayAlberta.ca offers players a safe and well-regulated online gambling experience as Alberta’s only legal online site with comprehensive and industry-leading social responsibility tools brought to you by GameSense. This launch provides us with a great platform for further expansion across the continent in tandem with Pariplay and Fusion.

Pariplay’s Fusion offering features over 14,000 games from 80+ suppliers, as well as back-office conversion and retention tools.

Adrian Bailey, Managing Director at Pariplay, added: “AGS has developed a deserved reputation for creating highly entertaining slots that capture the attention of players both in land-based and digital gaming environments.

“To take its content live in Alberta through PlayAlberta.ca is a great moment and the first step in our important mission of delivering the widest range of third-party content to operators and their players in the province. We look forward to seeing how players react to a portfolio packed with engaging and innovative games.”